Coming Home
by sherbsherb
Summary: Rory returns to Stars Hollow after a seven year run in a foreign boarding school.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: as much as i would love to take any kind of credit for the awesomness that is Gilmore Girls, i am simply an observer with a few random thought.

a/n: Rory's been at boarding school in New Zealand since fifth grade, putting her in her junior year with the older kids in their senior year. i started this story almost two years ago so some of the finer details escape me at the moment, but if i remember anything else i'll be sure to mention it at a later date.

COMING HOME

CHAPTER ONE

"Finn!" Rory yells at the bundle of blankets on the floor of her room that slightly resembles a body. "Get your ass up, my plane leave in a couple of hours." she nudges the pile on her way to the makeshift kitchenette in the common room to get her third cup of coffee.

"Ugg." The Finn shape on the floor grumbles, moving slightly at the interruption. "Is the sun out love?" his voice is muffled by the comforter he's wrapped in.

"Yes." Rory answers, sipping her coffee and stepping over Finn to the chair behind him.

"Then why are you assuming I'm going to get out of my comfy cocoon?" Finn asks her. "Why don't you come down here and join me."

"Because," Rory answers him patiently, pulling her bare feet under her into the comfortable chair and resting her head against the back. "I'm leaving the country in two hours and I need you to carry all my heavy bags."

"Why do you have to go?" he pulls the covers from his face and flinches at the sunlight streaming through the window.

"Because the school doesn't want me here anymore." Rory feels as though she's talking to a five year old.

"That's crap." Finn tells her, sitting up and leaning his back against her chair. "I don't want you to go."

"I don't want to go Finny." it's a good thing she had learned how to handle Finn in his early morning moods or her patience would have worn down years ago. "But I got in trouble and I cant be here anymore."

"Alright." Finn sighs, looking up at her. "Where's everyone else?"

"Logan, Collin and Steph are loading the last of my stuff." she answers him, glancing out the window, taking in the beauty that she would most likely never see again. "They've already shipped most of it and they're meeting us at the airport. So you need to get a move on." Rory taps him lightly on the head.

"Alright love." he grumbles, untangling his legs from his blankets and stands, swaying a little. "Where's my cloths?" he asks, looking down at his state of undress.

"On the common room floor, where you left them after you did a strip tease as my farewell present." Rory says pointing at the door to the common room.

"Ahh." finn walks to the door and stands there for a second before looking back at her over his shoulder. "Did you enjoy it darling?" he wiggles his eyebrows suggestively at rory, causing her to giggle.

"You know it." she answers watching him leave. Rory stands slowly, looking around the now empty room she had spent the last seven years living in. she sighs and picks up the blankets Finn had used with her empty hand and walks to the door. She pauses, taking one final look before shutting off the light.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

"Alright Ace, looks like this is where we bid you adieu." Logan says, stopping just outside the security check.

Rory sighs, looking over her shoulder passed the metal detectors to the terminal. "I guess it is." she turns back to her friends, looking at each one trying to memorize their faces. "I'm gonna miss you guys so much." the tears are evident in her voice.

"We're going to miss you more." Stephanie says reaching to pull rory into a hug. Rory wraps her arms around Steph as the tears fall silently down her cheeks. Steph finally releases her so the next one can have their turn.

As she's passed from friend to friend the tears fall harder. Finn takes his turn pulling her to him and squeezing hard he whispers in her hear. "Don't forget me darling." his voice quivers slightly.

"I could never forget my soul mate finny." rory whispers, pulling away so she could kiss him chastely on the lips. "Love you." she tells him, pulling out of his hold completely. "I love you all." she addresses the group of red eyes teenagers. Rory picks up her one carry on and puts it on the conveyor belt for the x-ray machine and walks through the metal detectors. Grabbing her bag she takes a couple of steps before turning back to her friends. She puts her hand in the air making the rock-n-roll sign and shouts "Good night New Zealand!" and walks away, her friends laughter fading from her ears.

Rory grumbles before opening her eyes as the plane finally lands. Looking out the window all she can see is the back of the Hartford airport. "Welcome Home." she thinks, waiting for the seatbelt light to be shut off so she can get her bag.

Walking out of the cramped passage way, she runs left heading toward where she knows baggage claim is. It had been a couple of years since her last "trip" home, but nothing had changed. not even the stores scattered throughout the surprisingly large terminal.

After collecting her luggage, she takes her time walking toward the exit, she's not ready to face a world without her support system. Sure she got along great with her mom, they were a lot alike. They like the same movies and the same music. They could both eat half their weight in disgusting foods, but her mom was no Finn, nor was she a Logan, both of whom were Rory's rocks. They kept her sane and she didn't know how she was going to handle not being with them 24/7 365 days a year. She'd even spent her holidays and vacations with them for the last couple of years. She'd missed everyone here, but not enough to deal with everything her dad had said to her last time she'd come home.

As the end of the terminal comes into view she can see Lorelei waiting just behind the crowd of people waiting to come through the metal detectors bouncing up and down on her tip toes with excitement. Maybe she'd down played her relationship with her mom. Her mom was another of her best friends and Rory felt ashamed for not coming home more often or at the very least she should have called more. As her own excitement about seeing Lorelei builds, she picks up her pace. By the time Lorelei spots her, Rory's full out running.

"Fruit of my loins!" Lorelei yells, running to meet Rory. The momentum of their collision knocks them to the ground where they lay for a second laughing and crying trying to disentangle themselves from each other. When they are finally on their feet again they hug until a guard walks over to them and asks them to move our of everyone's way. With a huff and a huge grin, they pick up Rory's bags and continue outside, never letting go of each others hands.

Once in the car Lorelai's curiosity explodes and she starts firing questions at Rory faster than she can answer. After a minute the big one is dropped and Lorelei actually pauses to hear the answer.

"Why did they kick you out?" Lorelai's eyes never leave the road in front of her.

"Dad didn't tell you?" Rory asks her knowing her dad was too ashamed to even speak it. A Hayden! Kicked out of the most prestigious boarding school in pretty much the world, what an atrocity.

"Our conversation went something like this. 'hey Chris' 'lorelai'" she drops her voice to imitate Christopher's. "'your daughter will be arriving in two days to live with you.' 'why Chris' 'she got herself expelled. I have to go.' click." she looks at Rory out of the corner of her eyes. "So, what happened kiddo?"

"I got caught trashing a guys dorm room." Rory answers, smiling ever so slightly at the memory of the vindication she'd felt at the act.

"Okay," Lorelai says. "why were you trashing a guys dorm?" she's confused, which is completely understandable considering she'd known nothing that had been going on in Rory's life for years. Sure Rory had been a little bit of a trouble maker, but she'd never destroyed property before.

"It was Justin's room." Rory explains looking out the window, her smile fading. "I caught him cheating on me in the library, so I retaliated."

"What a bastard." Lorelai states, her face instantly reddening in anger. "You should have had his ass kicked." her knuckles are turning white from gripping the wheel so hard.

"Believe me," rory tells her, looking over at her mom. "I had plenty of people offer."

"So why didn't you?" Lorelai looks at her, stopping at a red light. She notices the tears in Rory's eyes, but decides not to say anything about them.

"The damage was done." The light turns green and Lorelai turns her attention back to the road. "Plus it would only have resulted in my friends getting kicked out too." she continues, trying to convince herself she had made the right decision, letting the asshole live.

"How chivalrous of you." Lorelai says sarcastically. She would have had the kid hung from the flag pole wearing only a thong. "So, new subject."

"Great segway mom." Rory laughs at her moms tactics to lighten the mood.

"I know." she says, flipping her hair over her shoulder. "Anyway, we got you enrolled at Chilton. You start Monday."

"Yaa." Rory says without enthusiasm and twirls her finger in the air. "I've always wanted to go to a snobby prep-school." she leans her head against the cool glass of the window and closes her eyes. It's been a long couple of days and she hadn't slept much.

"I know hun." Lorelai tells her sympathetically. "But you're too smart to just start going to public school now. Look!" she says excitedly. "We're home." they pull into the drive-way of Rory's childhood home.

"I can't believe how much I've missed this place." Rory's smile returns to her as she steps our of the Jeep and takes a deep breath of the clean, crisp air of Connecticut. Meeting her mom at the rear of the Jeep to grab the few bags she'd taken with her on the plane. "So, who knows I'm home?"

"Only anyone within hearing distance of the house." Lorelai says, leading the way up the stair to the front door.

"So, considering who we live next to, everyone then." Rory says, laughing at her mom trying to open the door with a suitcase in each hand.

"Yeah pretty much." Lorelai grunts finally getting the opposing door open.

"Do they know why I'm here?" Rory follows her through the house to her old room.

"No." Lore answers, setting down a suitcase to open the door to Rory's room, having learned her lesson. "I didn't tell anyone. It would kill them to know that their Princess Rory got herself expelled from boarding school."

They walk into the long forgotten room and rory can't help but notice how empty it had become. She really hadn't lived here in years. Her bed didn't even have sheet on it.

Lorelai follows her gaze and she too notices the lack of the comfort of covers. "We'll go buy some for you to use until all your stuff gets here."

"Thanks." Rory says, distracted.

"What's wrong babe?" LOrelai asks, putting the suitcases at the foot of the bed and walking to stand in front of Rory. Being this close she notices the tears pooling in her daughters blue eyes, and this time she can't help herself, she pulls Rory into a hug and the teen lets out a sob.

"I haven't been here in so long and I haven't seen you in forever and," she sniffs. "it kills me to know that I cut you off because of dad." she's almost sobbing now and lorelai is rubbing circles on her back. "The worst part is I convinced myself you weren't my best friend to make it easier to just forget everything." Rory's sobs begin to die down again, but she still wont let go of Lore, not that she would have let her. "Im so sorry mom." Rory apologizes into her shoulder.

"It's okay babe." Lorelai tells her, trying to comfort her, reeling from Rory's admission. Sure she had noticed Rory withdraw from her, but she'd assumed it was just Rory growing up. She'd had no idea rory had done it purposely. "I understand."

Rory pulls away a little to look into her moms eyes. "Do you?"

"Of course I do." Lorelai tells her pulling completely away to sit down on the bed. She pats the spot next to her and rory sits down, leaning her head on her moms shoulder. Lorelai kisses the top of rory's head and sighs "I love you honey. I could understand anything for you."

"I love you too mom." rory says quietly. Lorelai looks down to see Rory's eyes closed.

"Why don't you take a nap." Rory's eyes snap open and she looks down at her bare bed. Lorelai laughs at her causing Rory to smile. "I meant in my bed, and I'll go pick up us some dinners."

"Sounds good." Rory yawns and stretches her arms over her head.

"What would you like?" Lorelai asks raising herself off of Rory's bed and walking into the kitchen. "Pizza or maybe something from Al's Pancake World." Rory follows her into the kitchen still yawning.

"Ive been gone for how long and you don't know what I want?" rory asks her, pretending to be offended holding her chest.

"Oh I forgot, you don't know." Lorelai says, taking a drink of water she'd poured herself. "Luke's gone on vacation for like six more days and he closed the place down for it." she explains putting the now dirty glass in the sink and walking past Rory into the messy living room.

"Why couldn't Ceasar run the place?" rory asks, her curiosity peaked.

"Last time Luke left Ceasar in charge he almost burned the place down." LOrelai turns back to her at the door. "So, pizza?"

"Yeah." Rory answers leaning in the archway, trying to remember if her mom had told her that or not. "Everything on it."

"Duh." Lore says in her best Valley Girls voice. "Go lay down. I'll wake you when I get back." she tells rory opening the door.

"Kay. Bye." Rory yells as the door closes. She sighs and heads up the stairs to her mom's room. As she drifts off to sleep curled in her moms fluffy comforter, rory thinks about how great it was to be home, even considering all that she had have to leave to get here.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Just want to say thank you to the few review i got. thank you Curley-Q and JennPenny3, my first two good reviews, made me feel good :)

King Auther. sorry you're confused, i do promise the i do promise this is a trory. i do love my finn/rory stories, but i'm a tristn/rory girl through and through. and i firmly believe that you don't have to be in love or with your soulmate, i have a theory that they can simply be your best friend.

okay, here is the third chapter, hope you still like it.

CHAPTER THREE

THREE DAYS LATER

"Hurry up mom! You're gonna make me late!" Rory yells up the stairs, hoping to hurry her mom along. As shhe stands at the foot of the stairs impatiently tapping her toe, she thinks about how busy the last two days had been. Saturday she spent reacquainting herself with the town and everyone in it, that in itself had taken all day. Then she had gone to dinner with her grandparents, so they too could welcome her home. Sunday her stuff arrived so she had spent the entire day putting away her things away and answering her mothers's questions about all her new nick naks. After she'd finally got settled in she'd remember she hadn't called her friends yet. The last two hours of her night had been spent on the phone with her four best friends (three of whom had been plastered). Then she'd fallen asleep and here she was, waiting for Lorelai to finish primping so she could take Rory to school.

The noise of the busy school greets Rory as she walks through the front doors of Chilton. She sighs looking down at the papers in her hands. According to the map her locker and first class were a straight shot from where she stood. She groans under the weight of her bag, suddenly missing her old school, and starts the trek to her first class, choosing to bypass her locker until her next hour, she wanted to go sit and lay her tired head on her desk before school started. Back in Zurenberg she'd barely be getting up to brew the coffe, classes there didn't start for another two hours

As rory's looking at the room numbers, she fails to notice all the looks she's getting. They hadn't had a new kid at Chilton since the beginning of the year and noone had heard anything about her. Although to one Chiltonite, she looked earily like a girl in a picture he'd seen a Christmas or two ago, standing between Logan Huntzberger and Finn Morgan. She'd immediately caught his attention, but he never go up the nerve to ask, either Huntz or Morgan who she was when they'd bothered to visit their left behind best friend. They'd all gotten into trouble together and his parents where the only ones who voted against shipping their kid off.

He couldn't believe he'd just watcher her walk by, it was surreal. His dream girl had stepped out of his dreams. He continued watching her walk down the hall and his heart paused when she turning into his first period class. "I gotta go." he tells his friends, waving over his shoulder as he walks toward the door she'd disappeared through. He stops at the doorway, his eyes searching the classroom. They land on her in the back of the class. In the time it had taken him to get to the room she'd managed to get out a book and completely shut out the whispers of the few students gathered at the front, obviously talking about her.

Rory was trying to ignore the feeling that someone was watching her, she wasn't about to give the cackling hens up front something else to talk about. She'd decided that she was going to finish ther senior year as quietly as possible. Which meant no fighting, no making specticals, and, if she could swing it, no parties. Now if she was invited to one, who would she be to turn it down, even she couldn't surpress the party animal her friends had grown inside her, but only by invite. So by choosing to be a part of the backgroudn, she ahd I en up her right to be a smart ass to complete strangers. No that any of this made her feelings of being observed go away, she could still feel the strangers eyes on her and it was making her want to squirm, but she'd been tought better than that so she simply gripped her book a little tighter. Just then the bell rang and the strangers eyes were gone. Rory sighed and closed her book, finally looking at the people surrounding her. God it was gonna be a long year without the rest of her brat pack to keep her sane, it'd been four days and she already wanted to hop on a plane to N.Z., run to the guys dorm and curl up in bed with Logan or preferably Finn.

She missed them most. Sure Collin was like a little brother and Stephanie was the sister she'd always wanted, but Logan had pretty much been her first everything. First kiss, first boyfriend, first, well you get the point. He knew her in ways noone else ever could. Finn was her soul mate, the yin to her yang. He had kept her grounded and sane during any tramatic even in her life, except this, she didn't have him for this one.

Lost in her thoughts, rory hadn't noticed the blonde hair, blue eyed boy sitting behind her, watching the back of her neck intently. She had even managed to block out the teachers dull voice as he read off the morning announcements.

"All right." the frumpy teacher says, addressing the inattentive room of students. "Theres ten minutes of home room left, talk amongst yourselves. Just keep it down." he walks to his desk and sits down, finding a pen he begins to write on what appears to be homework. With the teachers attention else where, the students leave their seats to gather in separate corners of the room to "talk amongst themselves."

Rory, who had decided that to be up this early everyday, she was going to need four cups of coffee, laid her tired head downon the desk and closed her heavy eyes. In her head she was trying to figure out where in their routine her friends were. They were either still asleep having decided to skip their first class or they were in the dinning hall eating breakfast, using coffee to nurse their hang overs. Rory sighs quietly wishing she were there with them, nursing a much deserved hangover. Damn Justin, ruined everything.

Tristan stood from his seat behind the mystery girl and walks around her desk to the one in front of her. Sitting on the desk with his feet in the chair he wachtches her make faces with her eyes closed.

"It's too early and I don't have enough coffee in my system." the mystery girl says suddenly, never lifting her head off her arms.

"Excuse me?" Tristan asks confussed.

She opens one eye to look at him and repeats herself. "It's too early and I don't have enough coffee in my system" she closes her eye again.

"For what?" Tristan isn't easily amused, but she seems to be doing a fine job of it.

"for you to be staring at me." she answeres him, still not raising her head.

"Who said I was staring at you?" Tristan asks her, a challenge in his voice. "Maybe I was making eyes at Trina."

"I can feel your eyes on me." she answers him, accepting his challenge. "I'm coffee deprived, not stupid."

"So how much more do you need?" Tristan asks her, smiling to himself at their seemingly easy banter.

Raising her right eyebrow she asks him, "Need for what?" never opening her eyes.

"For me to be able to stare at you." Finally she lifts he head to look him in the eye and his breath catches in his chest at how beautiful her blue eyes are in person.

"I'm gonna need about six more." she tells him as though it were the most obvious and reasonable answer.

"Wow." Tristan blinks, trying to clear the fog that was taking up residence n his head. "I don't have that much in a week." he chuckles at the look of shock that over takes her gorgeous features.

"Blasphamey!" she practically yells causing a few people to glance at them. "coffe is the source of life. It runs through my veins keeping me alive, hindered only by the small amount of blood." she explains sitting up and giving Tristan her full attention. He felt privileged to have earned it.

Chuckling to himself he asks her. "How much coffe do you have in a week?" She sits quietly for a minute, apparently calculating the vast amounts of caffeine she consumes. "My record is four hundred and thirty two but," she's completely serious and he's stunned. "that was on a bet. Normally it's about two hundred, two sixty depending on school."

"Why's it depend on school?" Tristan asks, intrigued by the strange girl sitting in front of him.

"Well," she answers, slouching back down in her chair and closing her eyes again. "I tend to consume more during mid-terms and finals on account of the all night study sessions."

"You don't seem the type to put off studying until the last second." He says, studying her relaxed features, amazed at her simple beauty.

"Oh I'm not." she informs him, opening her blue eyes once more. "Finn and Logan are, and seeing as I can't tell Logan no when he uses his puppy dog eyes, couple that with Finn's pouty aussie look, I'm screwed."

"Those your boyfriends?" Tristan asks, trying to hide the dissapointment creeping into his voice.

"No." she answers simply, her eyes never leaving his face. "Well me and Logan dated for a while in like ninth but now he's just my best friend. Well one of my best friends. Finn's like my soul mate and Steph and Colin are the siblings I always wanted." Apparently the way to get her talking was to bring up her friends.

"So, what are you doing here?" she'd really peeked his interest and he was having a hard time figuring her out. She didn't seem like the type of girl to associate with Logan Huntzberger, world renowned playboy or Finn Morgan the worlds drunkest teenage Australian, let alone have dated one of them. And what was she doing in Conneticut, why wasn't she still in New Zealand?

Her face visibly darkens and her laughing eyes turn angry for only a second before her features are overcome with sadness. "I got kicked out of my other school." she answers, her eyes falling to the desk in front of her.

At her reation to his question told Tristan to pry no further into the circumstances of her being here.. So he took a slightly different approach. "where was your school?"

"New Zealand." she answers, raising her eyes to meet his again.

"Wow. Boarding school. Did you like it?" he's still curious about her being here, but he wants to know more about where she was. And he was kind of interesting in finding out how the legendary Huntz and Morgan, trouble makers that they are, got involved in her life.

"Yeah." her face lightens and the laughter returns to her amazing blue eyes. "I loved it, thers no place on earth as beautiful as Zurenberg. That's where my school was." she stops talking and gets a far off dreamy look on her face, and then just as quickly as she went she's back. "Plus theres the whole no parents thing,.:

Tristan laughs lightly at her. She was kind of a trip but he liked it. "Tell me more about your friends."

"well, I met…" she's interrupted by the bell ending class and Tristan has to hide his dissapointment as she rushes to leave. "It was nice meeting you. I'll see ya around.: she tells him over her shoulder on her way out the door. Tristan barely has time to stand and wave before she disappears into the already crowded halls. He shakes his head and returns to his original seat to gather the few items he'd bothered to bring to class. Walking into the hall he's to preoccupied to notice all the people try to get his attention.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Again I must thank the you guys for the reviews, so here goes: cowgirl8016, i do appreciate how you managed to pick up on something i wrote unintentionally, but now that i think about it, i was making Rory clueless and i love it too! PepperAnn11, thank you for the review, i love putting Rory in really random backgrounds that some how end up with her meeting the LDB crew and falling for Tristan. Curley-Q, thank you for reviewing again :) good to know you came back and were still happy with the way i'm taking the story, and i really enjoy making Tristan realize Rory's isn't all she looks to be but much more. and thank you PhoebetheQueenOfDragons and Callista Wolfwood, makes me happy that you guys like the story. I hope I can keep you coming back. So heres the next chapter, hope you enjoy!**

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**Okay, so maybe not all private school babies were assholes. They guy from her homeroom didn't' seem too bad. Rory thinks to herself as she stuffs her things in her locker after her last class of the day. She'd actually been hoping to see him again but it seemed that the only class they shared was her first one. Making her way out of the now deserted school rory glances around hoping that for once her mom is on time. Not seeing the Jeep anywhere in sight, she sighs and puts her things down on the stairs before sitting down next to them and pulling out her ever present book.**

**She barely registers someone sit down next to her until they speak. "So my names Tristan." surprised she turns to see it's the boy from her home room.**

**She smiles and offers him her right hand. "I'm Rory." he smiles back and lightly shakes her hand. **

"**I figured I'd start with that so that if this conversation is interrupted I'd at least know your name." he explained to her.**

"**Makes sense." she says, placing her book mark back between the pages of her book before putting it in her bag.**

"**So where did we end out last one?" he asks her, rubbing his chin pretending to remember. "Oh yeah, you were telling me how you met your friends."\**

"**Well, I met them when my mom and dad decided to send me to boarding school in fifth grade." she starts, her eyes loosing a little bit of their focus looking out over the school parking lot. "Steph was my roommate, she'd been going to boarding school since the year before so she helped me assimilate to being away from home. And she introduced me to her friends, who I immediately loved. There was Collin, he was exactly like me, straight A bookworm type, we clicked instantly. Talking about books and movies. We didn't have all the same opinions, but that made the debating much more fun." Tristan wasn't sure which he was enjoying more, listening to her story or watching her face get so animated.**

"**Then I met finn. Even at 13 he was a force to be reckoned with. He was always making me laugh. I'll never forget the day he became my best friend. It was seventh grade and I had this huge crush on Tommy Boedin." Tristan cringes slightly at the name. he knew Tommy, Tommy had been going to Chilton for about three years and Tristan couldn't stand him, he was a cocky asshole. "I finally got up the nerve to tell him I liked him and he crushed my fourteen year old spirit. Finn found me curled up in the library crying. He sat with me while I cried, hugging me and trying to make me feel better. When I finally stopped crying he took me to get coffee then tucked me into bed. Then he went and beat up Tommy and made him apologize to me the next day. We were inseparable from then on." Tristan was having trouble picturing Finn , the human vodka and tonic, being sober long enough to do something that chivalrous.**

"**Logan and I didn't get close until the summer before we started ninth. I had to spend the summer with my grandparents in Paris. We had been in their town house a week before I discovered that Logan was staying next door with his own grandparents. We spent the whole summer together and eventually started dating. We were together for almost a year, his longest relationship to date." Tristan could believe that. Logan was a world renowned playboy, not known for commitment. "we grew apart as boyfriend and girlfriend and decided to stay friends. He knows more about me than even my own mother." she finishes, looking at him again.**

"**Wow." Tristan's states. "They sound loyal."**

"**They really are. I couldn't wish for better friends." she agrees with him, looking back at the parking lot.**

"**I wish I had friends like them." his so called friend would trade him for a hot chick any day of the week, and everyone else he calls friends only cling to him because of his name. the only real friends he'd ever had were the ones she was talking about, but they hardly ever even called any more and he hadn't seen them in years. Remembering something Tristan looks up from the ground. "I should warn you. Tommy Boedin goes here too." "Are you serious?" Rory groans. "God I though I was rid of that bastard years ago. Finn and Logan are going to love this." she laughs dryly putting her head in her hands.**

**He laughs and puts his arm around her shoulder. "don't worry. I'll protect you."**

**She lifts her head from her hands to look him in the eye. "Thanks." she smiles at him and his hear skips a beat. He'd only known her eight hours, but he was pretty sure he would do anything for her.**

**Just then a car pulls up in front of the school, causing Rory to break eye contact. "Finally" she sighs standing up and gathering her things. "That's my mom." she gestures to the Jeep "So I'll se you tomorrow, right?" Tristan smiles and nods his head yes. "good. Later Tristan." she turns and walks down the steps to the waiting car.**

**Tristan stands and watches as she climbs into the passenger seat and he smiles when she waves before her mom pulls away. He was pretty sure he was falling in love with her.**

**Rory groaned at the load noises that once again greeted her when she pushed open the doors to Chilton. Her mom had kept he p late the night before watching all the sad scenes in all of their favorite movies and then Pueblo was being stingy about the coffee this morning and with Luke out of town that meant the Gilmore Girls where going without until they got him fixed.**

"**Ugg." Rory groans again, placing her tired head on her locker, too tired to tyr and open it. She jumps a little when the phone in her pocket vibrates. "Pueblo broke so you better have a good reason for calling me." she answers. The chuckle that greets her doesn't sound familiar and it occurs to her that maybe she should have looked at the caller ID before she so flippantly answered.**

"**You sound chipper." the male voice replies and Rory's heart stops. She'd foolishly thought she'd never hear that voice again.**

"**What do you want?" she asks standing up straight and turning around to lean against the cold hard locker.**

"**I want to talk to you." Justin answers as if it should have been obvious. "I want to apologize."**

"**Why?" rory asks, confused as hell. Why did he care if she hated him or not.**

"**I want to get back together."**

"**Ha!" rory laughs loudly, earning a few looks from the people nearest her. "You want to get back together and what, do a long distance thing? You couldn't even be monogamous when I was across the school from you."**

"**What are you talking about?" now it was his turn to sound confused and Rory smiled at how stupid he was.**

"**Let me say this slowly so you can understand." Rory tells him, looking down the hall. "I. got. Kicked. Out. Of. Zurenberg. And. Now. Live. In . Connecticut." rory closes her eyes, tired again, missing Tristan come to stand next to her.**

"**When did you get kicked out?" he really was an idiot, wasn't he.**

"**You remember the day I found you and Lizzy in the library?" she pauses. "And then you went back to your dorm room seeking refuge, hoping my friends weren't looking for you only to find it destroyed?" she pauses again, making the still unnoticed Tristan smile. "Well I got caught doing that and Headmistress Clive thought it best to send me home." rory shakes her head at his silence. "So you're gone?"**

"**Oh my god, you're an idiot!" rory says, again warranting a few curious looks from passers by. "What did I ever see in you?"**

"**My incredible biceps?" he suggests seriously, causing Rory to laugh dryly.**

"**Goodbye Justin." rory flips her phone closed, takes a deep breath and finally opens her eyes. "Ahh!" startled by Tristan's blue blue eyes. She grabs her chest, her heart racing. She doesn't know it's more from being scared or his intoxicating presence. "How long have you been there?"**

"**Long enough." he shrugs non-committal, looking down at the floor for a moment before looking back up into her eyes and smiling gently. "I bought you a present?"**

**Rory stands up from her locker and rocks back and forth from her heels to her toes. "Really?" her blue eyes shift smoothly from sad to excited and Tristan's heart picks up it's pace. "Where?" she looks at him from head to toe, noticing his empty hands.**

**Tristan chuckles at her childlike excitement. "it's in my locker." he tells her, pointing down the hall over his shoulder. She stands on her tip toes looking over his shoulder as if she could tell which one was his locker and what treasure it held.**

"**Well, lets go!" she gestures behind him with her arm.**

"**Okay. Come on." Tristan says unconsciously offering her his hand. He notices only when she glances down and pauses trying to decide whether or not to take it. Tristan holds his breath, waiting for her to make her decision. His smile widens when she takes it and looks back up at him grinning. He pauses only for a moment to relish in the warm tingles spreading up his arm from where her fingers interlaced with his before turning and leading her to his locker. He suppresses the groan that threatens when he has to let go of her soft hand to open his locker. Blocking her view of the inside, he spins the lock and opens the door. He steps to the side so she can get a look of the treasures hidden within. He chuckles when she gasps and grabs her chest. She takes a timid step forward and raises her head slightly to sniff the air, her eyes never leaving his locker.**

"**For me?" she asks, her voice quiet in disbelief.**

"**Yep." Tristan answers proudly. "All four cups." **

"**Wow." she is stunned by the gesture.**

"**Sorry there's only four." Tristan apologizes still smiling at her reaction. "They only make cup carriers that hold four and I only had one hand so…" he trails off, shrugging to himself.**

**She jumps at him, wrapping her arms around is neck and kisses him on the cheek. "Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" she exclaims, stepping out of his grasp. "You have no idea how happy I am right now." she turns to the locker and grabs her first cup, taking a large gulp that would have had someone else screaming from the burns and continues talking. "pueblo went on strike this morning after only making two cups and mom hogged both of them saying she needed them more cause she had to put up with Michel and I stupidly let her. Had I known I'd have to deal with Justin first thing this morning I would have put up more of a fight." she takes a deep breath before guzzling more coffee and Tristan can't help but laugh. "So, thank you."**

"**Well, you said you would need at least six cups for me to stare so I figured four could possibly buy me some more conversation." he explains, watcher her down the first cup of coffee before starting her second, with a smile on his face pleased with himself. He'd decided to bring her coffee only after he'd passed a star bucks and remembered her first words to him.**

"**You have definitely mad made the top ten on my favorite people list." rory informs him, now nursing her third cup, apparently savoring the taste of this one.**

"**oh really?" rory nods her head, grinning up at him behind her coffee cup. "who else makes the top ten?"**

"**well," she starts. "there's the obvious, Finn, Logan, Steph, Collin, Mom and Luke. Then there's Professor McLane, Jane from the bakery around the corner from the boarding school, Johnny from the only American pizza place in New Zealand which just happens to be two miles from the school and finally you." she smiles at him, tipping her head back to finish the third cup. "Not necessarily in that order."**

"**Well, I feel as though I've accomplished something tremendous." he tell her as she reaches for the fourth and final cup, putting the empties back in the cup holder in his locker.**

"**it's not an easy list to get on." she informs him, turning back towards her own locker after Tristan closes his.**

"**Well I understand your friends and I guess your mom, but what about the other four people?" Tristan asks. "What did they do that was so amazing?"**

"**Luke is the provider of the best coffee in the world. Not just that, for the first twelve years of my life, he was almost the soul provider of food for me and my mom. There's also All and the pizza place, but they're no where near as good as Luke." she opens her locker and starts shuffling books from her bag to her locker and vice versa. "Jane mad the list cause she would give me a free cupcake every time I aced a test. Johnny made the list because he was the only person in Zurenberg who would deliver food to the school. Granted he only did it to flirt with me, but when I was depressed he would throw in a free pie." she closes her eyes and sighs, her hand on a book in her locker. "I'm gonna miss Johnny boy." she pauses for a moment, staring blankly into her locker, remembering Johnny. Tristan can only assume, before she shakes her head and continues what she was previously talking about. "Professor McLane was just awesome." she finishes Turing to face him after she closes her locker.**

"**sounds like you have a way with people." Tristan comments. "I'm glad I met you. And I'm most certainly glad I got on the list." just then the bell for the beginning of class rings. Tristan puts his arm around Rory's shoulders and turns her in the direction of their homeroom. "Now come on new friend, or we're going to be late." he can't help the surge of happiness that wells up inside him when she giggles.**


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

The end of my first week ,Rory thinks to herself as she takes her seat on the now familiar stairs, waiting for her mom. Lorelai had managed to convince Christopher that Rory needed a car, but it wasn't going to get to her for at least another week, so Rory was left waiting. Not that she minded, it was about her favorite part of the day, next to the coffee gifts fro Tristan in the mornings. It was the most time she got to spend with him, after school. Most days he would show up and they would talk about everything until her mom showed up and she really enjoyed it. Sure they saw each other in the morning in homeroom for fifteen minutes, but they didn't really get much one on one time. Between the announcements and Tristan's other friends, their time together in class was few and far between. Not that she didn't like his friends, they were nice and they had accepted her right away. She'd only been here a week and she'd been invited to three different parties, just for tonight.

She was starting to think she was possibly falling for him. Who wouldn't? he was handsome and really funny. He could keep up with her Lorelai paced rants when she was upset about something stupid which few people, outside of her four closest friends, could do. And he was incredibly well put together. No one managed to make the drab Chilton uniform look quite as good as he did, which was probably why he was so popular with the ladies.

Her thoughts were interrupted by her phone vibrating rather loudly from her bag sitting next to her on the stairs. Pulling it out of her bags she smiles at the caller id. "I was wondering if you were ever going to call me." she answers.

"Why love, I'm hurt," Finn answers, his hurt showing in his voice. "Of course I was going to call you. I've just had a bit of a busy week."

"What was her name?" Rory laughs, nodding at Tristan when he comes to sit next to her.

"Rose." Finn tells her. "The most gorgeous red head I've ever seen. I think I might be in love."

"Have you met her sober yet?" she mouths Finn's name at Tristan's questioning look. He nods, understanding immediately.

"Of course I have love!" he sounds almost offended, but Rory knows better. "Well I was practically sober. I think. I dunno, lemme ask Logan." he pulls the phone away from his mouth and yells at Logan. "Hey Logan! I got a question for ya mate. Yeah I'm on the phone wit Rory. O'course! What do you think I am, loony? Alright I will. Now can I ask… I dunno mate, if ya wanna talk to her you call her on your phone, now listen up will ya? Okay, 'ave I met Rose sober yet? Damn. Alright, thanks." Rory laughs at the exchange between her best friends. Even only being able to catch Finn's side causes a twinge of home sickness. She may technically be back home now and she loved being back with her mom, but Finn and Logan had become such a huge part of her life, they had become her other home.

"Alright kitten," Finn comes back to the phone, resignation in his voice. "I 'aven't quite met her on one of my sober days." Rory laughs at him, but before she can comment, he interrupts her. "But I will and I know that I will still be in love with her." "If you say so Finny." she shakes her head at her friend, even though he can't see her. "So what are you currently doing that has allowed you the time to give lowly 'ole me a quick call?"

"Ah, you not lowly in any way shape or form love." Finn tells her very matter-of-factly. "You're the most beautiful intelligent funny woman I know."

"Even more beautiful than your beloved red haired Rose?" Rory asks him, turning to look at Tristan, who appears to be lost in the thought, looking out over the parking lot.

"Oh darling," Finn starts. "Of course you're more beautiful than rose. "So you don't love her more than you love me?" she pouts into the phone, still studying Tristan's gorgeous profile.

"I could never love anyone more than I love you." finn consuls her. "And your wit and beauty are only second to your lovely mother."

"Why are you sucking up to my mom via me Finn?" Rory asks, slightly suspicious.

"Just making sure you put in a few good words for me with her love." He informs her, easing her confusion. "Just in case our paths cross again." Rory can hear Logan yell something at Finn, but she can't make it out. "Alright Logan, don't get yer knickers in a twist." Finn yells back, forgetting to pull the phone away from his mouth, effectively damaging Rory's hearing in her right ear. She shakes her head and changes ears, still rubbing her right one.

"Thanks Finn." she tells him, laughing slightly. "I didn't need both ears." "Oh! Sorry love," Finn apologizes sincerely. "Forget how vocal I can get."

"Salright."

"Well, Muffin I got to go. Apparently Logan, Collin, Steph and I have an important even we must attend." she can hear rustling in the background and she can picture Finn sitting in her common room on the couch, Logan and Collin on the two matching chairs and Steph running around trying to get ready. She's probably wearing a gorgeous red dress, her favorite color, her hair up on her head in some fantastic way with only one shoe on, having lost the other one a night or two before after coming home late a little tipsy and kicking the offensive things off in separate directions,. The image causes the homesick feeling in her heart to grow.

"Okay Finny. I miss you." she can hear the tears threatening in her voice.

"Ah Ace, I miss you too!" Finn instantly picks up on the tears. "No need to cry."

"I'm okay Finn." she reassures him sniffling. "Just homesick. Go to your party. I'll talk to you later. Loves you."

"loves you too."

"Bye Finny."

"Bye Kitten." with that Rory closes her phone and puts her head in her hands. The tears start to fall silently at first, but slowly she starts to sob. She'd completely forgotten Tristan was sitting next to her until she felt his hand rubbing her back, trying to sooth her.

She raises her red eyes to look at him. He smiles gently and tugs her toward him. Taking the hint, Rory leans into his side resting her head on his broad shoulder. She's not sure how long they sit there like that, but eventually the tears subside as does the sniffling and she's left to think about just how odd it is that she is so comfortable with someone she'd only met five days ago.

"You better?" Tristan's quiet gentle voice asks the top of her head. He'd never been one to comfort someone when they were upset, but he was finding it surprisingly easy with Rory. She brought out a different side of him, one he was beginning to like, a lot.

"Yeah. Thanks." she sniffles before sitting up straight and wiping her eyes on the sleeves of the sweater she was wearing. She turns to face him with a thankful smile gracing her beautiful lips. "Moment of weakness. Sorry you had to witness it."

"It's okay." he assures her. "Made me feel all manly and stuff." he tells her, puffing up his chest and flexing his arms, causing her to laugh.

"Glad I could help your already over inflated ego." She laughs harder when he physically deflates at her playful words, but his grin never leaves his face.

"Not that I'm not enjoying our time together, but shouldn't your mom be here by now?" he asks, looking down at the watch on his wrist.

Rory looks at her phone and curses quietly under her breath, it was four-thirty. Even her flaky mother usually managed to be earlier than an hour late. Flipping her phone back open, she dials Lorelai's cell number. "I am sooo sorry." she answers after the third ring. "Something came up and I spaced that I needed to pick you up and now I'm in so deep I cant. Is there a bus you can take or something?"

Rory sighs, looking up at the clear blue sky. "Yeah, but you had better replace Pablo by tomorrow before I wake up."

"I will I promise." Rory can hear sounds in the background, but she can't make them out. "I love you Hun, but I've got to go. TTYL."

"By mom." she sighs again, closing her phone and putting it in her back pocket as she stands up and puts her heavy monster of a book bag on her back. Tristan stands next to her, a question written all over his face. "Moms busy, so I get to catch the five o' five bus. You should get home." "I can give you a ride." Tristan offers, following her down the stairs.

"I live in Stars Hollow Tristan." she explains to him, walking in the direction of the bus stop. "That's like half an hour out of your way."

"I don't mind." He tells her, walking next to her. She chuckles and shakes her head at him. "Really." he grabs her elbow, gently stopping her. "I would enjoy taking you home. Plus, I have nothing better to do tonight." he smirks at her, causing her to smile again. "Come on." he tugs her toward the student parking lot.

"Alright." she complies, letting him pull her along beside him. "I guess it's better than riding the smelly bus."


End file.
